Sada-e Azadi

Realising that their backs are against a wall in Helmand province, and that in other parts of Afghanistan they are fighting more capable Afghan and  increased ISAF forces, insurgents chose civilian targets in Kabul February 26.
They attacked a hotel, a guest house and a shopping mall in the Shar-e Naw neighbourhood with a car bomb, suicide vest bomb and automatic weapons.

They killed 16 people, many of them innocent Afghans, Afghan National Security Forces who bravely defended their capital city and Indian doctors in the country to help Afghans.
In the early morning, while most of the city was preparing to celebrate an Islamic holy day, insurgents arrived in Kabul to murder.

Such attacks, like another attack in Kabul in January, show insurgents’ weakness. They cannot attack Afghan National Security Forces or ISAF directly, so they rely on attacking unarmed civilians or planting bombs under roads.

It also happened the day after the Afghan flag was raised in the centre of Marjah in Helmand province. There the Taliban had maintained a major stronghold only to be defeated by a larger and stronger Afghan National Army and international partners.

Meanwhile, in Pakistan, authorities captured Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar in early February, showing the enemy is running out of hiding places.

Afghan National Security Forces are improving while more ISAF troops are arriving. Insurgents know they are being defeated, so they stage attacks like the one in Kabul to create the illusion that they are still strong. But it actually shows their weakness, as Brigadier General M Azimi of the Ministry of Defense commented recently.

These are the people who claim they want to provide a better government for Afghans. The alternative they provide seems to revolve more around violent death than it does justice or respect for Islam or Afghan culture.
But they once again helped prove something to Afghans who saw the violent tantrum: the vast majority of Afghans are working to build up their nation, not tear it down.

Every day, Afghans work hard to develop businesses and have strengthened their nation’s economy, too.
On the Friday of the attack, many Afghans showed extreme courage and dedication to the idea of a peaceful, prosperous and safe Afghanistan. You could see them in the television and newspaper reports: police, soldiers, firemen and ordinary citizens fighting the attackers and rushing to save their innocent victims.

Some of those brave men gave their lives in this effort. Afghans everywhere can take pride in their selfless service.